20 Responses

One of the best stories I've heard about him was that when he was just starting his career in NYC in the late '70s he'd often go to CBGBs after work, which at that point in time would've been mind-blowing just about every evening.

He also ended up good mates with Iggy Pop, they're cut from the same cloth, so no surprise they hit it off.

>They come from a culture where they’re predisposed to enjoy food, where food is an intimate and important event. They have good character and a sense of humour and a good work ethic. I think that’s really all that’s required. >You talk a lot about Mexicans in the first two books …>God’s people.

That is a very nice thing to say... wish more of its fellow citizens think the same.

Drank with Bourdain in the stand-up bar, working-class district of Nishinari, Osaka where various animal parts and offal are grilled and served on the streets. He mentioned about the authenticity of culture is always found in these places, despite the bemusement of his local Japanese support team about wanting to go there instead of a rigid kaiseki establishment. Remarkable man.

I have very vivid memories of driving towards Blenheim with A Cooks Tour audiobook read by Bourdain playing. On reaching the part about killing the pig I had to pull over because my blood pressure dropped so much I was in danger of blacking out. Talk about evocative writing!

A great interview Russell. Thanks for that. It is clear that Bourdain had great lodes of shared experience and empathy with many of the people and situations he wrote about. From what I've seen he captured the wider context in a way that illuminated and respected all of the players.

I have been watching the "parts Unknown" series and the same empathy and connection is very clear through out.

Sad he is gone but we can still read / watch much of his work and appreciate him and our fellow travellers just a little bit more.

"There is another factor that should not be underestimated. On a national stage, we’ve seen an embrace of prejudice and intolerance, and that affects the mood of all citizens. My psychoanalyst said that he had never before had every one of his patients discuss national politics repeatedly, in session after session. Now there is a continuous strain of anxiety and fear from one side, and brutality from the other. "......."At the moment, many people’s vulnerability is exacerbated by the unkindness manifest in each day’s headlines. We feel both our own anguish and the world’s. There is a dearth of empathy, even of kindness, in the national conversation, and those deficits turn ordinary neurosis into actionable despair."

Thanks again for the interview and thanks AB for the many shared experiences and the insights.

"At the moment, many people’s vulnerability is exacerbated by the unkindness manifest in each day’s headlines. We feel both our own anguish and the world’s. There is a dearth of empathy, even of kindness, in the national conversation, and those deficits turn ordinary neurosis into actionable despair."

Great interview, Russell. Thanks!Does anyone else get a sense there's something about western culture in this 21st century world that's seriously askew? Courtesy of the youngers,listening to a fair bit of contemporary music - from pop to anti-folk. There seems to be a deep vein of sadness, wistfulness, and irony gentle or savage, running through most of it. Feels in striking contrast to the optimism (and anger) of 60s music, for example.

Courtesy of the youngers,listening to a fair bit of contemporary music - from pop to anti-folk. There seems to be a deep vein of sadness, wistfulness, and irony gentle or savage, running through most of it. Feels in striking contrast to the optimism (and anger) of 60s music, for example.

How about some feel-good Javanese metal? Several decades of imbibing Smoke on the Water with their mothers' milk doesn't seem to have done these kids any harm.